Friday, October 31, 2008

Happy Halloween!

As a cat, even an inside cat, Halloween is not my favorite time of the year. The doorbell begins to ring around dinner time and it keeps up way too long for me. Happily, the Pops put me in my room, (aka the half bath off the kitchen) close the door and I stay safe and sound.

Forget the trick or treaters, I’m more about the Get out and Voters!

This time next week you guys will have a new president. If everything goes the way the Pops want next Tuesday, this could be one happy happy household. Hey, I’m always up for a celebration, but this could get crazy.

May your treats outnumber you tricks and may you get one more treat on Tuesday!

Thursday, October 30, 2008

Needs (a follow up to yesterday’s post)

To follow up on my post yesterday, I feel I want to say something more about my decision with the little dog and what I discovered about myself.

Like I said yesterday, the soul searching began at the shelter, but it didn’t end there. All that afternoon I questioned my decision that I had made at the shelter. It dogged me (no pun intended) into the night and right on through until the morning. How could I walk away from that little dog? That just isn’t like me. Then it came to me why I was in such a quandary. It was all based on the past three years of Murphy’s life.

When Murphy lost his sight and his ability to hear, he became a sort of special needs little dog. Also with his ageing his schedule became erratic. He needed to go out more often during the day and night. His appetite would kick in at three in the morning. He couldn’t be left alone for any long period of time. To be painfully blunt, he wasn’t a buddy anymore, he was a little patient. He showed no joy as he interacted with us. He was past those years. It’s amazing how Mother Nature gently and gradually takes an old pet away even before its death.

As many of you know we had to rip our hearts apart and do what was right for Murphy last February due to his canine dementia. We had to let him go.

So there it is. That is the reason I just couldn’t adopt another little dog with special needs. I am just not ready to care for another little dog who is a patient. I need a new buddy. He or she is out there, we just haven’t found one another yet.

(Hell yes, I am crying as I write this. Sometimes that happens when one digs deeply into their soul)

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Yesterday was supposed to be so special

It was supposed to be such a special day. Yesterday was supposed to have been the day we would apply to adopt a little dog at our local no-kill shelter.

Monday on our local noon news, they showed this little dog from a local shelter that appeared to be just the little dog for us. He was one year old, part miniature schnauzer and part jack russell terrier. They said he was mild mannered and laid back. I mean he sounded like he was made to order for the Pop home.

So yesterday morning we drove out to the shelter to meet this little guy. Bless his heart, he had issues. He had been abused and was frightened of everyone and every noise. At one point he escaped the shelter workers grasp and tried to run away. He showed no response to humans except fear.

As I petted the little dog, so many things were going through my mind. This little dog was going to need a lot of work and patience. He would be a project and at this time in my life, I am just not ready to take on such a project. As much as I love dogs, I knew that I just couldn’t devote the time and energy that this little animal needed. Instead of filling out papers to apply for adoption, we thanked the shelter worker for her assistance and returned home.

I don’t know if I made a mistake or not. I do know that once we do decide on a little dog, it will be in our life for the rest of its life and I don’t want to start out with more hesitation than happiness. So what was supposed to be a special day, turned into a day of soul searching but no little dog. Now if I only knew what to do with these pangs of guilt that seem to be staying with me.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

My Frig Door

Here’s what’s playing on my refrigerator door right now and it will be there for some time to come. The bumper sticker is not attached, it’s being held there with magnets.

When I come into the kitchen each morning and see that little display, it always makes me smile. Since we voted last week, the little “I voted early” sticker is the latest addition to the group.

One more week to go. Can you stand it? A week from tomorrow we should know who the next president of the United States will be. It’s like waiting for Christmas morning and not knowing if Santa is going to bring you a new bike or a bag of coal.

Monday, October 27, 2008

A Good Investment

Who says there are no good investments right now? The best investment I have made in a long time was the money I donated to Senator Obama’s campaign. I expect that investment to pay off nicely over the next four years. At the end of that four years if everything is going well I plan to reinvest.

Friday, October 24, 2008

Fred the Cat, Explains McCain

As of late, Senator McCain has been saying, We have them just where we want them. He never says exactly who this “them” might be. But then he goes on to say basically he was the comeback kid during the primary elections because his campaign first went to ashes and then later was reignited.

Well, let me remind Senator McCain of something. His campaign went to ashes because he ran it into a brick wall. He spent more than he was taking in, among other things. The only reason his campaign was reignited was due to the fact that all the other republican candidates turned out to be members of some kind of bizarre freak show. It wasn’t that McCain was the best candidate from the republican party, it was that he was the least bad of all the worst.

Thursday, October 23, 2008

The Beauty of Nature

Looking at the simple beauties of nature is so good for the burdened soul. Enjoy!

Now, wanna see the sweetest video on the internet regarding Senator Obama? If it doesn’t bring a tear to your eye, well, maybe you aren’t as big a softie as I am. Be sure your speakers are turned on while you watch, “If babies could vote”. And notice how at ease he is with each little child.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Obama, Grandmothers and Love

I didn’t think I could admire Senator Obama more than I did, but I was wrong. When I heard yesterday morning that he was leaving the campaign trail tomorrow to go and be with his very ill grandmother, my admiration for him spiraled out of control.

I know what it’s like to have such a love for a grandmother, because I loved my own that way. She was like a mother to me when my own mother wasn’t. She was the one person in my life who seemed to care about me. I was absolutely positive of her love for me. Had it not been for that love, I don’t know where I would have been today.

While the media asks, should Obama leave the campaign trail at this crucial time to be with his grandmother, I say, Hell yes, he should! That’s what you do when you are losing someone who gave you so much and loved you so much. You give back just as much of that love as you can for just as long as you can.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Will the young people turn out?

Yesterday was the first day of early voting here in Florida. Now here’s something to lift your spirits. A group of students at a south Florida college camped out overnight Sunday night at their voting site so that they could be among the first to vote yesterday morning.

There has been talk about whether these young people will stand in long lines in order to vote. These students answered that question by basically saying, Hell yes! Not only are they going to show up and stand in long lines, they’re even willing to camp out overnight in order to cast their vote.

Here’s one more bright spot. When the local TV news visited these students early yesterday morning, the students had Obama stickers on their tents.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Serious Emotional Ups and Downs

Sometimes I wonder if my emotions can hold on to this political bungee cord they seem to be attached to these days. One minute I’m giddy with excitement thinking that Obama is going to nail this thing. The next minute I’m lower than low as the idea of McCain somehow winning just takes me into a deep funk.

Common sense says that Obama should win by a landslide, but Americans aren’t always known for using common sense.

Anxiety has reached a whole new level in my life right now. I’m counting the days. Why does each one have to last so long?

Monday, October 13, 2008

Beginning and Ending with Palin

McCain’s campaign is faltering a little now and hopefully the trend will continue. I believe the choice of Palin as his trophy running mate will be remembered as the beginning of the end for McCain.

Palin received a lot of attention as the country got to know who she was and what she was all about. But the more we learned about her the less attractive she became. Now it has been determined that she abused her power as governor of Alaska. America doesn’t need a vice president with a track record like that. We know only too well what that’s all about.

I believe McCain will go to his grave regretting his choice of Sarah Palin to accompany him on the ticket. She was his first and biggest decision and perhaps his worst. She was the beginning of life for his campaign and she may also have caused the death.

Friday, October 10, 2008

Kind of difficult to smile sometimes

Well, the financial world is a like a totally ignored litter box these days.

People are losing their homes, jobs, businesses and now they are watching their retirement accounts go down the drain. Is it any wonder that they aren’t out shopping? Is it any wonder they aren’t hitting the malls and spending what money they have left?

There’s another sad part to this story. Most local pet shelters are filled to the brim with pets that people have surrendered because they just can no longer afford to care for them or the people have lost their home and are moving into places where pets aren’t allowed.

When you shop for groceries this week, please remember the food banks and animal shelters. Both could use your donations.

Thursday, October 09, 2008

The Funny Part

Yesterday, I watched a rerun of the Tuesday night presidential debate. I was appalled by the same things you guys were. McCain was abysmal in so many ways.

But, there was one point I found to be laugh out loud funny and when I heard it, that’s exactly what I did. After McCain had dramatically misidentified Senator Obama’s tax plan. Senator Obama correctly responded, “The straight talk express lost a wheel on that one.

Senator Obama may have been a bit generous with his remark because it looks to me like all the straight talk express is running on now is the spare.

Tuesday, October 07, 2008

A Question of character, but whose?

We all know what a man or woman is called who will debase themselves for financial gain. Often times that person is identified as a prostitute or worse. Is there another name for a man or woman who will debase themselves for political gain?

Senator McCain’s vice presidential candidate, as of late, has been emphasizing Senator Obama’s association with William Ayres. If you read Saturday’s New York Time's article about this relationship, you know there is no there, there. Yet Ms. Palin continues to try to create ignorant fear based on suggested fabrications. As we enter the final weeks of this campaign, she is willing to do or say anything for political gains. She is eager to spread fear and champion character assassination. The only character in question at this point is that of Ms. Palin.

Friday, October 03, 2008

Fred the Cat and Peak time

Okay, time for this cat to fess up. Last night I wanted to stay up and watch the debate starring Governor Palin and Senator Biden. I had my cosmic catnip mouse right beside me and I was all ready to watch the show. But then I made a big mistake. I decided to just nibble on the catnip mouse a little bit. A little bit turned into a lot and before I knew it, I peaked too soon, crashed and fell asleep. Missed the whole ducking thing.

So help me out here. How did it go? Best part? Worst part? I’ll share my next cosmic catnip mouse with you if you fill me in on what happened.